The European Union imposed tougher visa conditions on Somali citizens in a dispute over the return of people living irregularly in the bloc, a move recorded on the date of 2026-06-26 and aimed at pressing Mogadishu to cooperate more closely on readmission.
EU member states approved the restrictions after a European Commission assessment found Somalia’s cooperation insufficient in taking back nationals who had been refused the right to stay. The measures affect short-stay Schengen visas and are open-ended, leaving the suspension in place until the bloc decides cooperation has improved.
Under the new rules, Somali applicants can no longer receive multiple-entry visas. Holders of Somali diplomatic passports also lose a fee waiver, and the standard time for processing visa applications rises from 15 days to 45 days. EU Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner said countries of origin must meet their obligations or face consequences, framing the decision as a push for stronger engagement on returns.
Somalia’s government rejected the suggestion that it was refusing its own citizens. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said during Independence Day events that Mogadishu would accept genuine Somali nationals but insisted that identities must be verified before deportations take place. He said Somalia could not reject its people, while also arguing that some individuals returned as Somalis in the past were not Somali nationals.
Mohamud said people from across the Horn of Africa may have similar appearances and that some people present themselves as Somali when seeking asylum in Europe. He said Somalia would take back those confirmed to be Somali and help identify others who were not. The president also said Somali embassies had been instructed to assist citizens returning home and that the prime minister regularly dealt with such cases.
The disagreement highlights a central problem in European migration policy: how to return people whose asylum claims have failed when documentation is incomplete or disputed. EU rules expect countries of origin to verify nationality, issue travel papers when needed and facilitate deportations. Mogadishu says verification is a matter of sovereignty and legal responsibility, particularly given Somalia’s history of displacement and fragile identity systems.
Somalia remains affected by the long aftermath of the central government’s collapse in 1991 and the civil conflict that followed. Recovery has also been hindered by al-Shabab, an al-Qaeda-linked armed group that has carried out deadly attacks since 2006. Those conditions have contributed to young Somalis attempting hazardous journeys toward Europe, including routes through Libya where migrants have faced abuse.
The EU has used visa restrictions before as leverage in readmission disputes. Similar measures were imposed on The Gambia in 2021 and Ethiopia in 2024. Restrictions on Ethiopia were lifted in May after EU member states concluded that cooperation had improved substantially.
The Somalia decision also comes as the EU pursues a broader tightening of migration controls, including faster deportations and proposals for return centres outside the bloc. Several European governments have supported efforts to create such centres as part of a wider migration-policy overhaul.
